The Pelicans introduced Stan Van Gundy as its new head coach today. Van Gundy is a defensive-minded coach. At his last head coaching gig in Detroit, the Pistons improved from 25th in Defensive Rating before his arrival to a top ten defensive team. His teams in Miami and Orlando also played well on the defensive end. Van Gundy was asked today about creating a tough-minded defensive team…
cut 28 (28) “…and effort”
The Pelicans had the 21st ranked defense in the NBA this past season.

LSU Football Coach Ed Orgeron said on a Baton Rouge radio station today that Quarterback Myles Brennan is feeling better, but he’s not sure he’ll play Saturday at Auburn. If Brennan can’t go, TJ Finley is expected to make another start. Finley benefited from a strong running game in the win over South Carolina.

The Tigers rushed for a season-high 276 yards in the win over the Gamecocks. Tyrion Davis Price had 135 yards and John Emery had 88 yards rushing. Orgeron says the plan was for both running backs to get a lot of carries
cut 19 (19) “two first-team starters’
Orgeron has also announced that starting left tackle Dare Rosenthal has been suspended indefinitely and Cam Wire will continue to start in his place.

Injured LSU quarterback Myles Brennan has returned to practice. Coach Ed Orgeron says there is a chance he could play Saturday against Auburn
cut 17 (17) 100 percent ready”
Brennan reportedly tore a stomach muscle in the loss to Missouri on October 10th and missed last Saturday’s win over South Carolina.

The Louisiana Sports Writers Association has named Finley as the offensive player of the week in Louisiana. Finley threw for 265 yards and two touchdowns in his collegiate debut. The defensive player of the year is the Cajuns Bralen Trahan, who had the interception that secured U-L Lafayette’s win over U-A-B, ending their 21-game home winning streak.

The Saints will bring a three-game winning streak into Sunday’s game versus the Chicago Bears, who lost last night to the Los Angeles Rams. New Orleans defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins says the team has fought through adversity well this season…
cut 30 (18) “…weather the storm”
The Saints are listed as a four point favorite for Sunday’s game in Chicago.

In the latest high school football polls, Acadiana remains the number one ranked team in Class 5A, followed by Brother Martin, who defeated Rummel last week. West Monroe is ranked seventh and they’ll visit 10th ranked Byrd in a newly scheduled game. Bastrop, Eunice, and Logansport are newly ranked teams in the polls.

Tonight is Game Six of the World Series. The Dodgers can win their first title in 32 years, while Tampa Bay is trying to force a game seven.

LSU Quarterback Myles Brennan has returned to practice, but it’s unclear if he’ll play on Saturday against Auburn. Brennan missed the South Carolina win because of a reported torn stomach muscle. Coach Ed Orgeron says he will not play Brennan until he’s 100-percent healthy.

Orgeron also announced on Monday that starting left tackle Dare Rosenthal has been suspended indefinitely. He did not give a timeline on when Rosenthal will return. Coach O says Cam Wire will continue to start at left tackle and he’s impressed with the former East Ascension star
cut 18 (21) ” second-team left tackle”
Even though LSU is on the road Saturday, they are listed as a three-point favorite to beat Auburn.

In Sunday’s win over Carolina, the Saints held the Panthers to 37 yards rushing. Defensive Tackle Sheldon Rankins says they have a mindset to make every team one dimensional…
cut 30 (22) “….throw the ball”
New Orleans is at Chicago on Sunday. The Bears lost to the Los Angeles Rams last night 24-10 as Chicago failed to score a touchdown on offense.

In the high school football polls….Acadiana remains ranked number one in Class 5A. The Wrecking Rams have won 19 in a row. Ferriday is ranked number one in Two and they’ve won 18 straight, while Ouachita Christian is number one in One-A and O-C-S has a 16-game winning streak. Bastrop, Eunice and Logansport are newly ranked teams this week.

It was an impressive debut for freshman quarterback TJ Finley as he threw for 265 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for a score in a 52-24 win over South Carolina on Saturday. Finley says he was well prepared heading into his first collegiate start…
cut 18 (25) ” very quick”
LSU Head Coach Ed Orgeron said today that Myles Brennan will practice today, but he will not play against Auburn unless he’s 100-percent.

Former LSU star Odell Beckham Junior is done for the season as the Browns receiver has a torn ACL.

The Saints won their 15th straight game in the month of October as they held off Carolina 27-24 to improve to 4-2 yesterday. Quarterback Drew Brees was efficient as he threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns. He also had a rushing touchdown. Brees’ second TD pass came at the end of the first half to give New Orleans a 21-17 halftime lead
Cut 15 (08) “..the game”
The Saints were 12 of 14 on third down, however, New Orleans defense had trouble slowing down Carolina’s passing game. But Marcus Davenport had a key sack on the Panthers’ final drive that led to a 65-yard field goal try that came up short.

New Orleans remains in second place in the NFC South. That’s because Tampa Bay beat Oakland 45 to 20 to improve to 5-2. Also, Tom Brady moved past Brees for the most NFL touchdown passes in history. Brady had four TD passes on the day.

The Saints with the help of three-thousand fans in the Superdome were able to defeat the Carolina Panthers 27-24 yesterday for their fourth win of the season. Carolina Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater played well in his return to New Orleans as he threw for 254 yards and two touchdowns. He led Carolina on a potential game-tying drive in the fourth quarter, but Marcus Davenport sacked Bridgewater which led to a 65-yard field goal. Coach Sean Payton knows kicker Joey Slye has a strong leg…
cut 17 (12) good win”
The Saints are 4-2, a half-game back of Tampa Bay who beat the Raiders on Sunday. New Orleans is at Chicago next Sunday. The Bears visit the L-A Rams tonight.

Former LSU star Odell Beckham Junior’s season is over as the Browns receiver suffered a torn ACL in yesterday’s win over the Bengals.

After beating South Carolina 52-24 on Saturday, the LSU Tigers now get ready to visit Auburn. LSU freshman quarterback TJ Finley believes the win over the Gamecocks can turn their season around….
cut 20 (24) “….together today”

Ragin Cajuns return specialist Chris Smith has been named Sun Belt Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time this season. Smith returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown at the end of the first half to help Louisiana beat UAB 24-20. The Cajuns are back on the road this Saturday as they visit Texas Southern. UAB will be in Ruston on Saturday to face La Tech, who lost a second straight conference game on Saturday to UTSA.

The Saints won their 15th straight game in the month of October as they held off Carolina 27-24 to improve to 4-2 yesterday. Quarterback Drew Brees was efficient as he threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns. He also had a rushing touchdown. Brees’ second TD pass came at the end of the first half to give New Orleans a 21-17 halftime lead
Cut 15 (08) “..the game”
The Saints were 12 of 14 on third down, however, New Orleans defense had trouble slowing down Carolina’s passing game. But Marcus Davenport had a key sack on the Panthers’ final drive that led to a 65-yard field goal try that came up short.

New Orleans remains in second place in the NFC South. That’s because Tampa Bay beat Oakland 45 to 20 to improve to 5-2. Also, Tom Brady moved past Brees for the most NFL touchdown passes in history. Brady had four TD passes on the day.

LSU freshman quarterback TJ Finley says the Tigers have their swagger back after beating South Carolina 52-24 on Saturday. Finley threw for 265 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for a score. Running back John Emery was impressed with Finley’s demeanor in his first collegiate game…
cut 19 (19) “…so calm”
It helped that the Tigers got their running game going as LSU rushed for 265 yards.

LSU remains out of the AP Top 25. The Ragin Cajuns are receiving votes and they are ranked 29th and they’ll visit Texas State on Saturday.

Louisiana Tech has dropped two straight Conference USA games and they’ll host UAB on Saturday. ULM is still winless and the Warhawks are home to face Appalachian State.

LSU Freshman TJ Finley will start at QB for the Tigers on Saturday against South Carolina in place of the injured Myles Brennan after beating out fellow freshman Max Johnson.  TJ’s father David Finley says that when his son faces off against the Gamecocks the speed of the game isn’t the concern, it’s getting the first hit out of the way

Cut 5

The Ragin’ Cajuns look to bounce back after suffering a loss to Coastal Carolina last week.  The Cajuns will travel to Birmingham to take on the UAB Blazers.  This will not be an easy task as ULL coach Billy Napier says that UAB is a well coached team.

Cut 19

The New Orleans Saints will face off against the Carolina Panthers this weekend, who are led by for Saints QB Teddy Bridgewater.  Bridgewater led the Saints to a 5-0 record last season after Drew Brees went down with an injury.  The Saints being familiar with Bridgewater should certainly help them, and All-pro Defensive End Cam Jordan says he’s excited to play against his former teammate.

Cut 16

The capacity at high school football games will double tonight from 25 percent to 50 percent capacity after Governor John Bel Edwards amends the state health order.  Parishes will have to meet certain criteria to re-open, including a 5 percent or less Covid positivity rate for the past two weeks.  Even if schools meet the requirements, Edwards says they will not be forced to increase capacity

LSU head football coach Ed Orgeron names TJ Finley the starter for Saturday’s game against the Gamecocks. O says the freshman from Ponchatoula has really improved this season and is ready for game action.
cut 20 (21) “do well”
Orgeron also plans to play the other true freshman, Max Johnson. Kick-off on Saturday night is at 6 PM

Saints All Pro receiver Michael Thomas did not practice yesterday because of ankle and hamstring injuries. Thomas has not played since the season opener and there’s a good chance that he will not be able to play in Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers. Offensive guard Nick Easton also missed his second practice with a concussion.

The Ragin Cajuns look to get back in the win column tonight when they face U-A-B in Birmingham. The matchup features two of the better Group of Five schools in the country and U-L Lafayette Coach Billy Napier says it’s been a long time since an opponent won in Birmingham
cut 18 (15) ” three phases”
Kick off is at 7 PM.

There will be more fans at some high school football games tonight as Governor Edwards is lifting the cap at games from 25 to 50-percent in parishes, where the positivity rate of COVID cases are 5-percent or less in the previous two weeks. He encourages fans to continue practicing social distancing and wearing face masks to keep it this way…
cut 9 (11) “…25 percent

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports wide receiver Michael Thomas was not present at the portion of the Saints practice open to the media today. On the injury report, it says Thomas is still dealing with a high ankle sprain and now a hamstring injury. His status for Sunday is very much in doubt.

LSU Quarterback Myles Brennan is not expected to play Saturday against South Carolina. True freshmen Max Johnson and TJ Finley are competing in practice to see who will be the starter if Brennan can’t play. Gamecocks Coach Will Muschamp doesn’t expect LSU will adjust its play-calling because they are playing a freshman at Q-B…
cut 20 (09) “…seeing”

Governor Edwards announced this afternoon the maximum capacity at high school stadiums can go up to 50-percent starting tomorrow if the parish has a two-week positivity rate below five percent.

NBA Hall of Famer and LSU legend Shaquille O’ Neal has been sworn in as a special reserve deputy with the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff Becket Breaux says he’s known Shaq for a long time…
cut 4 (10) “…great team”
Breaux says Shaq will participate in zoom calls and when he has the chance, he’ll ride along with deputies.

The Pelicans have officially announced the hiring of their new head coach, Stan Van Gundy. This will be his fourth head coaching job for the 61-year-old, who has served as a TV analyst for the last two seasons. During his time as a head coach, he worked with Shaquille O Neal, Dwight Howard, and Andre Drummond. Now he gets to help develop Zion Williamson.

Louisiana Tech has called a press conference for tomorrow to introduce Eric Wood as its new Athletics Director. He’s currently a deputy A-D at Central Florida. He’ll replace Tommy McClelland who recently left for a job at Vanderbilt.

LSU is reportedly self -imposing penalties after a two-year investigation revealed that a booster paid the father of former LSU lineman Vadal Alexander for a no-show job.  The penalties will include reducing scholarships and a 21-day reduction for official and unofficial recruiting visits.

And former LSU star Odell Beckham Jr. has been banned from the program for two after he handed out cash to players following the national championship.  Tiger Rag editor Ron Higgins says that it could have been even worse.

Cut 16 (11) “..game too”

South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp says that with Myles Brennan doubtful for Saturday, he doesn’t expect LSU to change its playing despite playing a freshman at Quarterback.

Cut 20 (09) “..seeing”

It’s been a crazy season so far for New Orleans Saints WR Michael Thomas, Thomas suffered a high ankle sprain in the Saints week one game against Tampa Bay.  Thomas was then held out of the team’s week 5 game against the Chargers due to disciplinary reasons.  Just when he was expected back, Thomas sustained a hamstring injury during Wednesday’s practice, putting his status for this week’s game in question.

LA Tech will look for its 7^th straight win over UTSA when the two teams meet in the Alamodome in San Antonio.  Bulldogs coach Skip Holtz says even though tech has dominated this series as of late, there’s been some close games between the two teams

Cut 17 (20) “..anything less”